Serving up great food since 2001

Category Archives: Gluten Free

When I was in cooking school in Mexico, we went to Taxco, the “silver city” often. I had also been there many times when I was growing up. The hillside town has silver mines and many silversmiths catering to shoppers. With every visit we would go to the Pozolerias for lunch or dinner. If we were lucky, we would be there on a Thursday we could get the Pozole Verde (green). On other days there was Pozole Rojo (red) and Blanco (white). Traditionally Pozole was made with pork. I know this is gross, but back when the Aztecs were sacrificing humans, they even used human flesh and later, pork tasted more like human flesh. Over the centuries it has developed into a regional stew with pork, chicken or even vegetarian ingredients.

Pozole is the Mexican name for treated corn, also known in the US as hominy. Since maize was a sacred plant for the Aztecs and other inhabitants of Mesoamerica, pozole was made to be consumed on special occasions. The conjunction of maize (usually whole hominy kernels) and meat in a single dish is of particular interest to scholars, because the ancient Americans believed the gods made humans out of masa (cornmeal dough).

This recipe is for the rojo pozole with chicken and it includes home made stock as well as an abundance of dried chiles. In this case I used ancho and guajillo which make a rich and delicious stew.

While this recipe is developed for the Instant Pot, it can also be made in a dutch oven or pasta pot. The cooking time will be much longer.

A note about the hominy/pozole: This can be made with canned hominy, but I suggest you take the time to soak and make your own. It will have much better texture and flavor. You can buy prepared hominy by Rancho Gordo, however, it is smaller than the kind purchased in Hispanic Markets or the kind you will make yourself. Both will need to be soaked over night and cooked in the stock for about 30-50 minutes in the IP. If you are cooking in a regular pot it will take 2-4 hours depending on the kind you are using. The Rancho Gordo Hominy takes less cooking time because of the size of the kernels. If you really want the original flavor you can buy large heirloom corn from Anson Mills (my favorite heirloom provider) and make your own. It is an extra step, but well worth the effort. Directions can be found here: How to make Hominy from Corn.

Ingredients:

Chicken stock made from a whole chicken

Breast and thigh meat from the chicken, reserved

2 cups of dry hominy soaked for 8-10 hours

6 ounces each of dried Ancho and Guajillo chiles

1 onion cut in large chunks

8 cloves of peeled and smashed garlic

1 tablespoon of Mexican Oregano (or marjoram)

Method:

Drain the hominy and rinse.

Put the hominy in the Instant pot and cover it with stock, about 3″ above the hominy.

Cook on the bean function for about 30 minutes if using Rancho Gordo Hominy, 60 minutes if you are using the Mexican Pozole. Check for doneness. It should be somewhat al dente, but not tough or difficult to bite into. Avoid over cooking it to retain integrity of the kernels.

While the hominy is cooking, use a large skillet to toast the chiles in even batches. When toasted, break open and remove seeds and stems. Put them in a blender with the garlic and onion.

When the hominy is cooked, take off about 1 cup of the stock and pour it into the blender and puree the chiles till smooth.

Pour the blender contents into the Instant Pot, stir in oregano and seal. Cook on Bean setting for 15 minutes.

To serve, put some of the chicken into bowls and ladle the pozole over it.

I make this every time we get live lobsters, which is only a few times a year. Over the years I have tweaked this. I always have to buy an extra lobster or two tails to add some meat to the soup. It is the best soup I have ever tasted. While it is rich, a single bowl and some bread make a fine supper with champagne.

Add lobsters head first and boil until cooked through, about 15 minutes. Using tongs, transfer lobsters to large bowl.

Reserve 2 cups cooking liquid. Cool lobsters

Working over large bowl to catch juices, cut off lobster tails and claws. Crack tail and claw shells and remove lobster meat. Coarsely chop lobster meat; cover and chill. Coarsely chop lobster shells and bodies; transfer to medium bowl. Reserve juices from lobster in large bowl.Or you can serve the lobsters and save the shells, reserving extra meat for the bisque.

In a clean pot add shells, onion, carrot and reserved cooking liquid. Add enough water to cover the shells with an additional 2″ of water.

Cook low and slow for several hours (I have a simmer burner and let it simmer over night), until the stock has reduced to the level of the shells. Strain over a large pot.

You can cool and save this in the freezer or refrigerator or use straight away.

Discard solids

Bisque:

Heat olive oil in heavy large pot over high heat.

Add onion and next 8 ingredients. Boil until almost all liquid has evaporated, about 4 minutes. *Note, if you are using tails for the meat, put them in with veggies and cook till meat is white, about 4 minutes Use one tail per serving.

Add lobster stock

Simmer 1 hour.

Remove bay leaves

Use a stick blender to puree

Strain soup through sieve set over a pot, pressing firmly on solids. Whisk tomato paste into soup. Add sherry and cognac.

Simmer until soup is reduced to 3 cups, about 15 minutes. (Can be prepared 1 day ahead. Cover and refrigerate at this point)

Add cream to soup and simmer 5 minutes.

Dissolve cornstarch in 1 tablespoon water.

Add to soup and boil until slightly thickened, about 2 minutes.

Ladle soup into bowls and top with a pile of lobster meat, some fresh chives, freshly cracked black pepper and a drizzle of sherry.

Big Daddy makes a few cooking attempts to ease my busy schedule. Last night he hit a homerun. Pho (pronounced FA), the simple (yet complex) Vietnamese Street food charmed him when we lived in Hawaii. He is not one for exotic flavors, so this surprised me a bit. Since then we have been to several restaurants here in Charleston that serve Pho. He decided to make it and it was an astounding winner. We paired it with a Belgian Ale and that was a fantastic match too. We had some leftover rare beef (tri-tip) so he froze it and sliced it thinly. I usually ask for my meat on the side when ordering Pho in restaurants, I don’t like it over cooked. We have enough broth for at least two more meals.

Arrange bean sprouts, mint, basil, and cilantro on a platter with chilies and lime.

3.

Soak the noodles in hot water to cover for 15 minutes or until soft. Drain. Place equal portions of noodles into large soup bowls, and place raw beef on top. Ladle hot broth over noodles and top with beef. Pass garnishes and sauces.

Really good cherries are hard to beat for flavor and beauty. This application is something that goes well with duck, pork or chicken as a side dish, but also is good as a dessert over ice cream. It is super simple. You just have to find some really super cherries! I got mine from Whole Foods just as the cherry season was beginning. I used bing cherries but any large firm variety would work for this.

2. Rinse the cherries with cold water and pad them dry gently with a kitchen towel.

3. Place cherries in a bowl and toss them with olive oil and balsamic vinegar, and season generously with salt and pepper.

4. Transfer cherries to a non-reactive baking dish (glass or porcelain are ideal) with the stem standing up. Preferably, the cherries will fit really close to one another. Cover the baking dish with aluminum foil.

5. Roast the cherries in the oven for 20 minutes or until they start to release their juices. Remove the foil, and place the baking dish back in the oven for another 5 minutes to allow the juices caramelize a bit.

6. Remove from the oven and let them sit for 5 minutes. Serve cherries as desired spooning some of the juices over the cherries.

This fabulous recipe was inspired by the book The Latin Road Home by Jose Garces. The book explores the cuisines of Ecuador, Spain, Cuba and Mexico. This is one of the best cookbooks I have picked up in a while. In this recipe, I used fresh corn, but good frozen corn would work too. I also added some seasonings and chiles to the recipe. I make my own achiote paste, but you can buy it in Hispanic or Asian markets. Quinoa is an amazing chenopod, full of protein and fiber.

Crema de Quinoa de Zuleta; Quinoa Chowder with Sweet Corn

Ingredients:

2 cups Canola Oil for frying

2 small russet potatoes, peeled and cut into match sticks or cut on a spiral cutter

This gluten free recipe is an inspiration by Jose Garces from his fantastic book, The Latin Road Home. He is an Ecuadorian who was raised in Chicago. The book covers foods from Ecuador, Peru, Mexico, Spain & Cuba. This bread is made all over South America, but the recipe varies greatly from country to country.

The Yuca flour is easy to find in most Hispanic Markets, it is often called Casava Flour or Tapioca. The brand I got was Brazilian and reading the label was a challenge. I do read Spanish, but Portuguese, not so much. The ratio of flour to cheese sounds kind of crazy, but it works. Serve the bread hot from the oven for a spongy texture or warm (for a denser interior with the dough settling more and forming air pockets).

Ingredients:

1 cup yucca flour

1 pound queso fresco finely grated

1 large egg, beaten

1 tsp baking powder

2 Tbs whole milk

1 Tbs butter, melted

1 tsp sea salt

1 tsp granulated raw sugar

Guava Chile Butter (recipe follows: optional)

Method:

Preheat oven to 375

Line a baking sheet with parchment or a Silpat

In the bowl of a food processor, combine the flour, baking powder, salt and sugar. Pulse a few times to combine.

Put the cheese in the processor, then mix all of the wet ingredients together and pour into the processor bowl while the blade is going. It will form a ball in about a minute, Take it out of the processor and lay it on a yucca floured surface. Allow to rest a few minutes

Form into a log and cut into 10 equally sized pieces. Roll into balls, These will be slightly larger than a golf ball.

Place the balls onto the baking sheet and bake for 20 minutes or till golden brown

Serve warm. To re-heat place in a 200 degree oven for 6-8 minutes, loosely covered with foil

Guava Chile Butter

Ingredients:

1 21 ounce package or can of guava paste (find at Latin Markets or online)

¼ cup Chinese Black Vinegar

¼ cup Sriracha Sauce

2 Tbs room temperature butter

Method:

In the bowl of a food processor, place the guava paste.

Pulse a few times to loosen it up.

Add the remaining ingredients and pulse till incorporated. This can be stored in the refrigerator for up to two weeks.

I served this with green chile and chicken posole. It would go great with soup, stews, chili or as an appetizer course. I will be sharing the Posole recipe next.

I adore Indian food. The spices, bright colors and flavors could sustain me and bring joy to my palate for eternity. I never tire of the deep rich combining of so many ingredients to make one dish. Carrot pickles are one of those complexly layered side dishes that not only delight visually, but also in flavor. There are lots of ingredients, but once you have them all measured out, it only takes a few minutes to make these and they keep for at least two months in the fridge if you don’t share them. The problem I have is when people tastes them, they just want more and more and soon they are gone.

When they sputter, add 1 large onion, a chunk of ginger, and 4-5 garlic cloves that have been pureed together.

Throw in the curry leaves and fry the mixture until light golden brown. Lower the heat and add chilli powder, turmeric, cumin powder and a pinch of hing.

Add jaggery and salt.

Turn off the heat and add vinegar. Taste and adjust the spices – you want it to be hot chilli wise, but slightly sweet and sour from the sugar and vinegar. Mix in the carrots, place into a clean glass jar and store in the fridge. This will keep for several weeks. The recipe can be doubled so you can share some!